What Are Australia’s IP Strategy Race Winners Planning?

The Importance of IP Strategy

An IP strategy is becoming increasingly important across the full spectrum of industrial sectors and companies, both in Australia and globally. As a consequence, it is important not only for CEOs but for all involved in Intellectual Property development within a company to formulate strategies for managing that company’s intellectual property assets. Developing an appropriate IP strategy allows for maximal utilization of these assets in aiding the company to realise its goals. Indeed, IP strategy has become an integral part of corporate strategy.

Intellectual Property

As defined by on the Australian Government IP website, ‘IP is the property of your mind or proprietary knowledge. It is a productive new idea you create. This can be an invention, trade mark, design, brand or even the application of your idea.’
Hence IP covers a range of products, used in differentiating one business or company from another. IP can be a significant percentage of a business or company’s total asset value – for many companies and businesses, the value of their IP assets can be worth more than the value of their physical assets. This is reflected in the number of applications made for patents within Australia.

“Over the last 10 years, it has become imperative for CEOs to have not just a general understanding of the intellectual property issues facing their business and their industry, but to have quite a refined expertise relating to those issues… It is no longer simply the legal department’s problem. CEOs must now be able to formulate strategies that capitalize on and maximize the value of their company’s intellectual property assets to drive growth, innovation and cooperative relationships with other companies”Microsoft Chairman, Bill Gates to Chief Executive Magazine.

IP Strategy

Just as IP covers a range of products, consequently there exist a range of IP rights. The primary forms for IP protection are patents (utility and design), trade marks and copyrights. For example, an invention is protected by a patent; the appearance of the invention is protected by design registration. A registered Trade Mark will protect the distinctive aspects by which an IP distinguishes a business from others (such as names, logos, symbols, even colours or scents). Australia also provides plant breeder’s rights. As a company grows and evolves so does the importance of IP; IP strategy is therefore a continuous process of review and decision-making.

IP and the Australian Patent

In Australia, IP rights are secured by a broad range of industry sectors, as the scope of technologies which can now be protected continues to grow. The companies comprising the top 10 patent applicants in Australia over the past few years ranges from gaming to healthcare to computer software.
Per the table below, only 1 of these top 10 companies is Australian-based (Aristocrat Technologies Australia). The Australian economy remains open not only to foreign investment, it provides a market for foreign companies to actively participate and compete with local companies. Australia’s well established IP laws and experience juridical system further attracts those companies who are right holders.

Name

2012

2013

2014

2015

Aristocrat Technologies Australia

274

133

85

147

Apple Inc.

245

246

177

191

General Electric Co

233

177

150

93

Covidien

213

285

299

143

BASF

207

200

182

165

Novartis

189

233

183

172

Nestec

178

222

149

151

Samsung Electronics Co

159

366

292

321

Halliburton Energy Services

150

226

358

590

Google

133

219

139

112

Number of patent filings of top 10 Patent Applicants in
Australia in 2012 from 2012 to 2015.
Source: IP Australia records

Over the past decade the nature of competitive advantage has changed, as has the global economy. Intangible knowledge assets have become as important, if not more so, than traditional tangible, or physical, assets. Where tangible assets were once responsible for the bulk of a company's wealth, total market capitalisation is becoming increasing represented by intangible assets, such as patents, copyrights and trade marks.
Hence the importance of conducting an audit of existing IP materials as part of a company’s IP Strategy. The eclectic range of the top 10 companies applying for patents in Australia has changed little over the past few years – they have all consistently filed for a large number of patents per year, reflecting the importance of an IP strategy to the growth of success of their companies.

What's Your IP Strategy?

Who do you talk to? Who can you trust? In the global economy of the 21st century, a clear strategy to identify and then protect your intellectual assets is more important than ever before. Talk to us about putting a commercially relevant plan in place to minimise risks to your assets.